


Promise

by angvlicmish



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, High School, M/M, Mentions of homophobia, mentions of bullying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-03
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-07-19 22:51:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7380685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angvlicmish/pseuds/angvlicmish
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five promises Dean made and five promises Dean kept.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Promise

“Dean, honey?” Mary calls from the kitchen. “We’re going over to meet the new neighbours and I hear they have a little boy the same age as you. Do you want to meet him?” 

“Yes!” Dean yells, as he sprints down the stairs nearly tripping on the last step. He’d been spying on the new neighbours from his treehouse since the first day they arrived next door. Most of it was boring. Just people taking things into the house and coming back out to collect more stuff. But he had spied the little boy wandering around the front garden. In an instant Dean had decided that they were going to be best friends.

“I’m glad to hear it. Now I’m going to go grab your father and brother and we’ll head right on over.” Mary says, ruffling his hair.

In just five minutes Dean is bounding up the stairs of the Novak’s new house and rapping excitedly at the door. He waits for a moment, impatiently tapping his foot against the porch, but then the door is swinging open and he’s greeted by a tall woman.

“Oh, Mary, John. Come in, come in.” the woman says, motioning them in the door way. “It’s nice to finally meet the rest of your family.” she says, her eyes flicking between Dean and Sammy up in his mother’s arms. This must be Mrs Novak, Dean thinks.

“Of course. It’s lovely to meet the rest of your family too. And if I’ve heard right, I think our little Dean here is excited to make a new friend.” Mary replies.

“Oh, yes! My little rugrat is in the living room just down the hall if you wanted to say hi.” Mrs Novak says, bending down to Dean’s level.

“Thank you, Mrs Novak.” he says quickly before dashing off down the hall. When he gets there, he pokes his head around the corner and is immediately met with large blue eyes. 

“Who are you?” the boy asks.

“I’m Dean. I live next door.” he replies.

“Hello Dean.” A beat.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Castiel.”

“Cassiel.”

“No, Cas-ti-el.”

“Cas-di-el?” the boy shakes his head, a small smile gracing his lips. “Cas? Can I call you Cas then?” The boy tilts his head. A beat.

“Okay.” the boy replies.

“Do you wanna come and see my treehouse?” Dean asks.

“Yes, I would like that.” Cas responds, and then they are up and out of the house in an instant. They spend the next hour up in Dean’s treehouse talking aimlessly and playing with his figurines.

Eventually, Mrs Novak calls out, telling Cas that he has to come home now.

“I have to go, but I had fun. Bye Dean.” Cas says, walking over to the ladder.

“Wait.” Cas’ head flicks around, wide eyes staring at Dean.

“What is it?”

“Do you want to be friends?” Dean asks, tugging at the sleeves of his shirt.

“Yes, I would love to be your friend.”

“Okay, good. Cause I promise that we’ll be best friends forever.”

Dean and Castiel both smile for the rest of the day.

Fourteen.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Dean yells, throwing his arms out to the side. Castiel shrugs. He’d come out as gay a few months ago. He didn’t want the news to spread but it did. The only good thing to come out of it was that Dean didn’t care. However, it also meant that Castiel got bullied a lot more than he already did. It has been going on for a while but today Dean had found out. He was furious.

“Why wouldn’t you tell me? I could’ve helped to stop all those bastards from beating on you.” Dean says, his jaw clenched and fists now balled up at his sides. Castiel shrugs again.

“I don’t know...it’s just...” he trails off, averting his gaze down to where his hands are tangled together on his lap.

“It’s just what?” Dean asks, stepping closer to where Castiel is sitting on the bed.

“It’s just embarrassing.” Castiel answers quietly. “I mean I’m already getting bullied enough for being a loser in general and now this.” Castiel breaths deeply trying to calm himself down. “It doesn’t matter anyway. I probably deserve it.”

“Hey!” Dean yells, anger flaring up again. “Don’t you ever say that about yourself.” he says, walking over and sitting down next to Castiel. “Cas, look at me man.” Dean asks, softly, nudging him in the side. Castiel can’t help but oblige. “I don’t care that you’re a big giant geek like Sam.” Castiel huffs a laugh. “I don’t care that you have “rusty people skills”. And I certainly do not care who it is that you love. I care about you and I promise that if someone even tries to lay a hand on you again they will be wishing they hadn’t. You hear me?” 

Castiel nods, not trusting his voice to reply without the emotions spilling over. Dean stays with Castiel that night, holding him tightly in the bed. And the next day, Dean follows Castiel everywhere glaring at anyone who even looks at Castiel the wrong way.

Castiel goes home that evening and eventually comes to the realisation that he is completely and utterly in love with Dean Winchester.

Eighteen.

Castiel tries his hardest not to care or be jealous. But it’s hard when your best friend and the boy who you’re secretly in love with has slept with half the girls in their grade.

Nearly every week Dean will have another pretty girl on his arm and Castiel has to sit next to him at lunch the next day pretending to be impressed by it. Just like today. Castiel stops listening as soon as Dean starts talking about it. It’s not Dean’s fault though. It’s his own. It’s his own fault that he just had to go and fall head over heals for Dean Winchester, someone who is one hundred and ten percent heterosexual and a professional womaniser.

“Hey, Cas. You alive in there buddy?” Castiel blinks and realises that Dean is waving a hand in front of his face. He quickly brushes it away and finishes chewing the bite of his sandwich.

“Sorry. I was just thinking.”

“About what?” Dean asks, grabbing a handful of chips from Castiel’s tray. He nearly laughs. About how I’ve completely fallen in love with you.

“It’s nothing.” 

“That’s bullshit. I can see right through you, Cas.” Dean says with a grin. But when Castiel finally looks up at him, a pained look in his eye, Dean’s grin quickly fades. “Crap, I’m sorry, Cas.” 

“It’s alright, Dean.” Castiel replies, sincerely. Dean bites at his bottom lip.

“Are you gonna tell me what happened?” Castiel sighs.

“Nothing happened, Dean.”

“No one’s bullying you again are they? Cause I wasn’t lying when I said I’d fuckin - ”

“No, Dean!” Castiel hisses, trying his hardest to keep his voice down. It was true though. No one had touched him since Dean had found out about it all those years ago. He’s never been so grateful for what Dean did. “It’s not that. It’s just...” Castiel takes a deep breath. Should he do it? Should he tell Dean about his massive crush? He finally convinces himself that he’s going to have to get it off his chest one day and it might as well be now. However, he can’t seem to find the right words and ends up just mumbling “It’s just you and...you know...” whilst waving his hand vaguely towards Dean.

Dean’s eyes go wide and Castiel suddenly has a really bad feeling about this. What if Dean is revolted by it? What if Dean never wants to see him again? Castiel’s train of thoughts are cut off when Dean speaks.

“Fuck, Cas. I’m so fucking sorry. I didn’t even think about it. I mean you’re gay. Why would you want to hear about me and some chick every week when you don’t even like ‘em? Shit, I’m sorry. I never meant to make you uncomfortable.” Castiel’s eyes are wide. What?

“No, that’s not it. That’s - no - it’s about me and - ”

“Oh, okay. I get it.” Dean says, shuffling closer to him. Castiel sucks in a breath. Does he? “Look, Cas. I never meant to make you jealous.” Oh god, is this really happening? “Just because I’ve hooked up with a bunch of girls, doesn’t mean shit. And just because you haven’t hooked up with some guy yet, doesn’t mean shit either. Chances are, you’ll have a much higher percentage of actually building a relationship with someone than I ever will.” 

Castiel feels like his whole body just deflates. His head drops to his chest. Right, of course. Why would he ever think that Dean likes him back? He wants to bang his head against the table. “Thank you, Dean.” Castiel replies, and Dean must notice the sadness in his voice because suddenly there is a hand under his chin and Dean is lifting his head back up to look at him.

“Hey. I’m not lying, Cas. I promise you that one day you’re gonna meet a great guy and he’s gonna sweep you right off your feet and you're gonna sweep him right off of his.” 

Dean’s voice is so soft and sincere that he feels like he’s going to melt. So, just for a few seconds longer, he can’t help but helplessly gaze into Dean’s eyes, only one thought on his mind. But you’ve already swept me off of mine.

Twenty Three.

Castiel stands on the balcony, outside his apartment. His and Dean’s apartment actually, now soon to be Lisa and Dean’s apartment. The party is still going inside. All of their friends are over and while it’s been nice to catch up, he can’t help but keep flicking his eyes over to where Dean and Lisa are being all touchy in the corner.

He’d never really had to deal with that before. Dean was kind enough to always go over to Lisa’s place whenever they were going to spend time together. It doesn’t make it hurt any less though.

Castiel takes a sip of his beer and leans on the balcony rail. He looks up at the sky and just tries to think back to something that he might have done to earn all this suffering.

When he’d first heard about Dean and Lisa it took some time to sink in. First he was angry. Not angry at Dean, no. Angry at himself for being so hopeful. Then came the emptiness. A few days went by where he just...didn’t feel anything. Dean had thought he was just tired.

Then came the crying. He would never admit it to anyone but he’d cried for hours over what he knew would be the end to anything he’d ever wished for. He feels like crying right now just thinking about. God, he’s so pathetic.

Suddenly a hand is on his shoulder and Castiel is whipping his head around to see Dean there, a concerned look on his face.

“Oh, Dean. What are you doing out here?” Castiel asks, his eyes travelling past Dean to where their friends are still chatting away inside.

“Just came to check on you. Is everything alright?” Dean questions, moving closer into Cas’ personal space.

“Yes, of course. Everything’s fine. Why don’t you go back inside and enjoy the party.” Cas says, averting his gaze from Dean’s concerned eyes.

“C’mon Cas. I’ve known you for seventeen years now. You can’t fool me. I know when you’re upset.” Castiel feels like his heart is slowly tearing itself apart. He looks up to the sky again. Why can’t Dean be in love with him too? “Is this about Lisa kicking you out so she can move in, cause you know I fought tooth and nail for you to stay.”

Castiel flicks his eyes up to meet those dazzling green eyes that make him weak in the knees. “No, I didn’t know that. Ah...thank you, I guess. But it’s not Lisa’s fault. I mean I was getting in the way of your relationship and it was probably time for me to move out anyway, considering we don’t really spend much time anymore...” 

Castiel stops talking as soon as he feels like his throat is lodged with tears. He squeezes his eyes shut as hard as he can and tries to will them back. All of a sudden Dean’s warm, rough hands are intertwining with his own. 

Castiel’s eyes immediately flicker open and he swears for a moment that his hearts stops beating. Dean is so close now, his hands squeezing Castiel’s lightly.

“Cas, I know Lisa has gotten in the way of our...friendship but I just want you to know that I will never, ever, leave you.” 

Castiel’s heart is pounding so hard in his chest that he’s sure Dean can hear it. And then Dean’s forehead is touching his own. His eyes are locked onto Dean’s and they stand for a moment just staring at each other. Castiel can see that there are conflicting emotions inside of Dean but he doesn’t know what they could be.

“I promise.” Dean whispers, and then the warmth is gone and Dean is receding back into the house.

A few hours later the party is finally over and Castiel is curled up in his bed, staring at the wall. He lies there for a while, trying to hold onto the warmth that Dean’s touch gave him. It fades too quickly and eventually Castiel is dozing off, dreaming about green eyes and whispered promises.

Twenty Six. 

Dean barely hears what the old officiant next to him is saying. He’s trying his hardest to keep his eyes on Lisa but now that he’s spotted Cas in the very back of the church, leaning against the wall and in just his simple everyday black suit, he can’t help himself but keep flicking his eyes subtly over to him. God, he’s such a coward. If only he’d confessed his feelings to Cas before then It would have been simple. He would’ve been accepted or rejected. At least that’s better than the ridiculous mess of emotions that wage war inside Dean’s mind everyday.

He’s starting to sweat and his heart is beating erratically in his chest. Fuck. Cas looks absolutely gorgeous. Dean mentally kicks himself. He’s getting married for christ’s sake. He can’t be ogling the boy he secretly fell in love with while standing across from his soon to be wife. He starts absentmindedly tapping his foot on the ground quietly to calm him down. But then he hears those words and the world just stops.

“Speak now or forever hold your peace.” The room is silent. Dean turns his head just in time to see Cas walking out of the church. Fuck. Fuck, fuck fuck. He looks back to Lisa and she has a sad look in her eyes. Well, Fuck.

“Okay - ”

“Wait,” Dean blurts out quickly, earning quite a few shocked gasps from the crowd. He looks back to Lisa but there’s no anger.

“Why didn’t you just tell me how much you loved him? Why did you say yes when I proposed to you when you knew you were in love with someone else?” 

“Shit, Lisa, I am so so sorry but I can’t. I have to take this chance. It might be the only one I’ll get.” The crowd seems to have gone quiet but Dean can feel some of the death stares being thrown his way. However, Lisa just gives him another sad smile.

“Go get him, Dean.” Dean feels a wave of relief wash over his body and he leans forward to kiss Lisa on the cheek. 

“I’m so sorry, Lis. I swear I’ll make it up to you.” he says quickly and then he is sprinting down the aisle and out of the church. 

He skids to a halt when he sees Cas sitting on the bottom stair, staring up at him and not even caring about the rain that’s pounding down onto him. How cliche, Dean thinks.

“Dean? What are you doing?” Cas asks, his eyes wide. Dean carefully jogs down the stairs until he’s right in front of Cas.

“I called it off.” Cas stands up quickly, his eyes going even wider and his head flicking over toward the church in alarm.

“What?”

“Yeah, I called off the wedding.” Dean says and even though this is definitely not the time Dean briefly runs his eye’s over Cas’ body, his clothes sticking to his skin. If possible, he‘s even more beautiful.

“What? Why?” Cas asks. Dean answers without hesitation.

“Because I’m in love with someone else.” Cas’ lips part slightly and despite the rain Dean thinks he can see Cas’ eyes filling up with tears.

“Who?” Cas asks and it’s so quiet that Dean nearly misses it.

“It’s you, Cas. It’s always been you.” Dean says moving closer into Cas’ personal space. Now he can see that there are a few tears streaming down his cheeks. “And I know I screwed up. I screwed up so much...but if you’ll have me, I swear that I will never hide my love for you ever again and I will make up for all the time that I’ve wasted.”

Dean’s never been so nervous before in his life. He just needs an answer. He just needs to know if Cas reciprocates his feelings. A moment of silence passes between them but then Cas is grabbing either side of his face and pulling him in to finally seals their lips together.

Dean unconsciously wraps his hands around Cas’ waist while the other man’s hands move from his face to wrap around his neck. Despite the cold rain falling down on them, Dean’s never felt so warm in his life. Cas’ lips are perfect on his. Everything just feels so right. Like they were meant to be.

When Cas finally pulls away there are more tears streaming down his beautiful face and it’s only then that Dean realises he’s shed a few tears himself. There foreheads rest together and for a moment it’s just them. Nothing else matters to Dean. Only Cas.

“So? Is that a yes then?” Dean asks hesitantly.

“Of course I’ll have you, Dean. But only if you’ll have me too.” Dean smiles. How could he ever give up Cas? Cas is his everything.

“Yeah Cas, I’ll have you.” Soon enough Dean’s lips are back on Cas’ soft ones. He’s never been more content in his life. When the pull back again Dean can’t help but get lost in Cas’ beautiful eyes.

“I love you, Dean.” Cas says, his voice cracking. Dean’s heart is pounding severely in his chest now.

“I love you too, Cas.” he says back.

“You promise?” Cas asks, their breaths mingling together in between them. 

“I promise.”

**Author's Note:**

> For more ficlets go to angvlicmish.tumblr.com


End file.
